Workplace Harassment Legislation

Floor Speech

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, first, some good news. As the majority leader noted, Senators Klobuchar and Blunt have agreed on legislation to overhaul the way Congress handles workplace claims to protect staff and others from harassment. It certainly needed an overhaul. Shamefully, the current system--soon, hopefully, the old system--didn't do enough to protect victims and hold perpetrators of workplace harassment accountable.

Among the other crucial reforms, the Blunt-Klobuchar legislation would do away with mandatory waiting periods that too often discouraged complaints and let them languish. It would also make important changes to ensure that Members of the House and Senate are held personally accountable and liable if they have committed harassment.

So I want to commend Senators Klobuchar and Blunt, who worked with many Members, including Senators Gillibrand, Murray, McCaskill, Feinstein, Harris, and Cortez Masto, for putting this together. I also thank my colleague, the majority leader. He and I were involved and are both cosponsors of this legislation. It is an example, again, of the growing sprouts of bipartisanship coming forward in this body. I hope we can pass it quickly, with overwhelming, if not unanimous, support.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Source